1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a flat cable clamp which is used for fixing a flat cable having flexibility such as FFC (i.e., Flexible Flat Cable) and a ribbon electric cable, to a body to be mounted such as a car body panel.
2. Description of the Related Art
As one of a conventional flat cable clamp, such a thing that a flat cable is clamped down by 2 pieces of clamp main bodies and the flat cable is fixed to a printed board, has been known (e.g., see, JP-A-06-275966 publication).
This flat cable clamp is equipped with 2 pieces of clamp main bodies where an opening portion and a convex portion are formed. According to the flat cable clamp, it is configured in such a manner that the flat cable and the printed board are clamped down between respective surfaces of 2 pieces of the clamp main bodies where the opening portions and the convex portions are disposed, and the flat cable is fixed to the printed board by having a fastening member passed through a fixing hole.
In this flat cable clamp, such a situation that a flat cable is clamped down by 2 pieces of clamp main bodies formed separately has to be maintained by use of a fastening member as a separate member, and the number of components, which configure the flat cable clamp, is large. On that account, a configuration of maintaining such a situation that a flat cable is clamped down by 2 pieces of clamp main bodies, without using the fastening member, by disposing, for example, a locking mechanism which is configured by combination of a locking protrusion and a locking hole which can be engaged with the locking protrusion, and so on.
In this regard, however, even in case that the clamp main bodies configured in this manner are adopted, there is need to reduce a gap been a flat cable and a flat surface, so as for a flat cable which is disposed between a flat pressing surface of the clamp main body and a flat printed board (i.e., it stands between a flat surface and a flat surface) not to flip-flop by excessive vibration to generate noised, in case that a flat cable clamp is mounted on a vehicle such as a car. However, by configuring in that manner, there is no choice to reduce an over-stroke of the locking mechanism, on the occasion that 2 pieces of clamp main bodies are engaged with each other, and engagement of 2 pieces of the clamp main bodies becomes difficult. Therefore, there is a room for improvement.
Meanwhile, the over-stroke of the locking mechanism, in case of explaining a case in which the locking mechanism is configured by a locking protrusion and a locking hole which can be engaged with the locking protrusion as an example, means a size of predetermined clearance to be formed between a catching surface which is caught by the locking protrusion among inner peripheral surfaces in which the locking hole is formed, and a catching surface of the locking protrusion which is caught by that catching surface (i.e., a distance between catching surfaces).